From Inc Magazine:

“You have a choice as a small company: Are you going to spend frivolously on things you don’t need, or are you going to be appropriately frugal?

“Being appropriately frugal means saving money on things you can save money on,” says Brett Fox, Former CEO at Touchstone Semiconductor, GM at Micrel and EIR at Crosslink Capital. Fox continues his explanation below:

1. Buy all your office furniture used or get it for free. We got our first set of 20 cubicles for $500. The next set we got for free. They didn’t match, but who cares.
2. Buy all your test equipment used. We bought everything in our lab second hand. The equipment was perfectly fine, and we saved a bundle of money.
3. Fly coach. This is an obvious one, but I’m still surprised at how many people don’t do this.

There are many more you can do, but setting the tone of frugality is contagious. The rest of the automatically starts thinking of ways to save money when you lead by example.

On the flip side, spend money where you need to spend the money. Each situation is different, so we spent on:

1. Hiring the best engineers we could. High quality engineers in our industry (high performance analog ICs) are a scarce commodity. We spent what we needed to spend in order to hire A players.
2. Having the appropriate software and tools for the engineers. Releasing a hardware product costs a reasonable amount of money, so the more first-time successes the better. We never scrimped on the verification tools our engineers needed.
3. Healthcare. We wanted our benefits to match up with our larger competitors. This was a big selling point for new employees.
4. Marketing. Our business model was predicated on having 1000’s of customers buying from us, so we spent what we needed to spend. At the same time, we negotiated great deals with the various trade publications in our industry.”

See the entire article on Inc’s website by clicking the link below:

Inc Magazine Article: 3 Things a Small Business Should Never Spend Money On

(image courtesy: Aldi.com)

A second Aldi store opened its doors to the public on Thursday, near the intersection of David McLeod Blvd. and N. Beltline Drive.

The 17,000 square foot grocery store stays in line with the grocer’s national commitment to cost-saving measures that the company says, “offer incredibly high quality at impossibly low prices.”

You can read more about the grand opening and the newest Aldi location in the following story from the Morning News:

SCnow.com web article- Second Aldi Store Opens in Florence

(2016-2017 Junior Leadership Florence County Class)

This year’s class of Junior Leadership Florence County met for the first time this week.

The leadership program enables high school students from public and private schools across the county, to come together to get an inside look at the business and government communities in Florence.

Please stay tuned for updates on this exciting program that is presented by Clemson Extension, the Greater Florence Chamber of Commerce and Francis Marion University.

 

We can’t wait to see what unfolds this year!

For a look at the entire album from the orientation session, click on the link below:

Junior Leadership Florence County Facebook Page

Rainwater Building

(image courtesy: macrostiehistoric.com)

From the Morning News:

“FLORENCE, S.C. – The Rainwater Building serves as an example of what can happen when private and public partnerships form to revitalize historic properties and bring jobs and further investment to downtown with sister companies EmployReward Solutions and Med-Enroll.”

See interviews with those involved by clicking on the link below:

SCnow.com web video- Rainwater Building

(image courtesy: Facebook Live)

From Inc Magazine:

“The social giant is making the case that business leaders can benefit from engaging customers in a personal way, in real time.

Watch your back, LinkedIn and Twitter…here’s how using Facebook Live can change the game for your small business.

Facebook has been actively recruiting business leaders since last year to use the social network as a means to connect with their customers, employees and shareholders. The company “activated” 20 business influencers in the final six months of 2015, and through the first six months of 2016, Facebook has ramped up its efforts, signing up 80 business leaders, the social media giant told Inc.

“Facebook in many ways is the new town hall for business leaders,” said John Cantarella, the social network’s head of global influencer partnerships. “It really allows business leaders to engage in an authentic way with their key audiences, whether its employees, customers or even shareholders.”

This initiative is part of Facebook’s greater effort to promote Facebook Live, which is the company’s most notable new feature in the past year and a half. Facebook has been paying numerous news outlets and celebrities to use live streaming feature as a way to inspire everyday Facebook users to do the same.”

Read the full article by clicking on the link below:

Inc Magazine Article: Facebook Live and Small Businesses